Mesmerized

dead," Sandra announced.
    "Dead?" Pain flashed through Adam's eyes. 
    "Yes, Camille didn't care for him."
    Camille walked out the door her head held high and met eyes with Adam. "He could not live. That man had too much evil in him. He would have continued harming innocent children."
    Adam looked off into the distance as if he was recalling a memory. "You're right. But, he was like a father to me."
    "I know, child."
    "Can I see him?" His voice was strained. 
    She pushed open the door and Adam entered first. The guns were put away. Camille was more dangerous than any weapon they could own. Adam stared silently at the man that had taken him in when he was a misfit teen. "What do we do now?"
    "Bury him I suppose," Camille said lightly.
         
    "We need to clean this mess up." Sandra looked over at John.
    "Don't worry we'll take care of it. Take your daughter home." 
    Jake held Lily tightly, not ever wanting to let her go. Seeing her with a gun pointed at her, he had really feared for her life. Placing his finger under her chin, he lifted her face up and very gently kissed her. “I love you,” he whispered.
    “I love you, too.”
    “Are you okay?” he asked.
    “I've been better.” Lily touched his shoulder. “How’s your arm? I can't believe you got shot.”
    “It’s fine.” He grimaced in pain.
    “Really? I'm sure it hurts like hell.”
    “Don’t worry about it right now. We have to get that house burned down.”
    “Not with that shoulder!” Gregory raised his eyebrow. “Camille, can you fix that?”
    “Of course I can. I’ll need my herbs to make it heal completely. We'll take care of his wound, and then deal with the house. It's not going anywhere.”
    They watched as Camille ground down herbs and infused them with oil. She held her hands over the concoction mumbling under her breath. 
    "Get over here, Jake." 
     Jake took his shirt off and sat down in front of her. 
    Camille put her hands over the wound and closed her eyes. She chanted "What was done, be it undone." She repeated it three times before he actually felt the bullet inside of him move. It wasn't exactly painful, but it felt strange and made his stomach roll. A minute later, it was at the surface and Camille grabbed it. She let it drop to the table where it bounced and rolled. Lily thought it was going to fall off the table, but it came to a sudden stop. 
    Camille soaked a white cloth in the herbal remedy and carefully put it over the open wound. Bright red spread through the cloth. She closed her eyes and Jake felt a tingling throughout his shoulder and chest. At first there was an intense heat, and then the pain dissipated and his shoulder was pain free. 
    "Wow. You are amazing." He looked in awe at Camille. 
    "I've heard that before." 
    They all laughed. 
    With that, Jake turned to the rest of the room. “Thank you all so much. I'm sorry you had to go through this for me. I can never repay you."
    "It's not over yet. We need to destroy the house." Gregory rose to his feet. 
    An hour later, they were standing in front of Henry’s mansion. It was a clear cool night, not a cloud to be found. Camille took a step forward and closed her eyes. She raised her hands to the sky. 
    “Ashes to ashes, 
    flames to lightening, 
    Rise together and become one. 
    Banish this evil from all the harm it has done.” 
    Lily jumped when thunder crashed and a bolt of lightening hit the house. She saw a flicker of orange on the roof and soon flames poured out of the windows. She was in awe at how quickly the flames spread. They watched as the house burned to the ground, thankful it was secluded enough not to draw attention.
    Jake felt the tension leave his body as the huge house crumbled to the ground.  His whole life he had been running from these people and if this truly was the end of it, he’d be free. He quickly wiped a tear from his cheek.
    “Let’s go home,” Sandra said to the group. She draped her arm over her daughter’s shoulder. 
    Lily looked up at her mother and mouthed the words. "Thank You." 
    She wondered what would happen now that everything was over. Would they go back to school? Would her parents send her to a new one or homeschool her? And what would happen with Jake? Her mind raced.
    Camille looked over at her. "Child, you worry too much. Everything will be fine." Camille slung her bag over her shoulder. "I'll be leaving now. Always a pleasure to see you, Sandra. Let's not let so much time pass before our